Oh, the conversation the two of them could have had if someone could have intervened, “Matrix”-style, and frozen the moment in time Sunday afternoon, a snapshot and a snap-chat of aggravation at the Eighth Avenue end of Madison Square Garden.
Donovan Mitchell, grinding through a brutal game in which he’d missed 13 of his 18 shots, had made the kind of subtle, clever play that can literally be a game-changer. Caris Levert knocked down a 3 to give the Cavaliers a 69-66 lead in the third quarter. Madison Square Garden was tomb-quiet. The Cavs were poised to steal homecourt back in Game 4.
And then: Mitchell somehow snuck behind an unaware Julius Randle — himself having a rough afternoon where he’d miss seven of his 10 shots — and then stepped in front of him, intercepting a pass from Jalen Brunson, and sprinted for what was going to be a thunderous and shattering dunk.
Randle had other ideas.
Randle — who’d spend most of the game looking alternately injured and indifferent — dashed back stride for stride. Mitchell rose and readied for a dunk. Randle got his hand in the way. If you could freeze the moment, what would they have said to each other as Mitchell descended empty-handed and Randle tipped the ball to Josh Hart?
“Tough game.”
“Tell me about it.”
Things got no better for either of them from there. Mitchell wound up with only 11 points. Randle all but checked out for the final 4 ½ minutes of the quarter, then sat the entire fourth, coach’s decision. Both teams need their All-Stars to figure things out, the sooner the better, and since it’s the Cavs facing elimination Wednesday (and maybe Friday) Mitchell’s dilemmas are a little more urgent.
But make no mistake: the Knicks have to get Randle right, too. Randle was something of a surprise starter in Game 1 of this series, and he scored 16 points in the first half which was stunning given the fact he hadn’t played in 17 days. Since then, though, it’s been a tough stretch for the Knicks’ lone All-Star: three points in the second half of Game 1. A quiet 22 (and an ugly late-game spill) in Game 2.
Follow The Post’s coverage of the Knicks vs. Heat NBA playoff series
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And in the two games at the Garden this weekend it was even grislier: 18 total points, 6-for-25 shooting. Worse, as the third quarter progressed Sunday, save for that one spasm of energy, Randle looked detached and occasionally disinterested on both sides. If he’s still hurting, you can understand the grind getting to him. If he’s not, it’s a more worrisome thing.
But either way, the Knicks need Randle to find himself. Maybe they can win one of the final three games of this series even if he remains aloof from the center of the fray. But it’s best not to find out. And there is little question whatever ambitions they might have beyond this series, should they get that far, would be muted with a limited version of No. 30.
“Look, Julius is our horse. He’s given us everything that he has,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said after Sunday’s game. “A lot of guys probably wouldn’t even be playing. He was out an extended amount of time. We’ve got multiple days here before the next game where we’ll get a chance to get some recovery time. The thing I love about him is he gives you everything he has. He’s done that. To come back the way he did, be ready for Game 1. Credit to him.”
And then: “We need it, he’s our horse. You know that.”
He is. The Knicks have looked fine even with a diminished Randle but it is preposterous to believe they can reach anything close to their ceiling in these playoffs without him. Randle’s chief problem has been that with his offense suffering either from rust or a slump, he’s been less than impactful everywhere else.
Randle at his best is a triple-double threat every game he plays, and when he’s engaged he’s a positive on defense, too. The Knicks have been able to camouflage him so far — “We all have his back,” Brunson said — but they are all aware that they need the best of Randle in order to be the best of themselves.
It would be stunning if Mitchell doesn’t find his game between now and Wednesday night. If that happens — and even if it doesn’t — Randle needs to find his, too. The Knicks have been a terrific show so far. They’re even better whole.
